Women Have Strong Showing in Weight at HCAC Championships

TERRE HAUTE, IND.- The Defiance College women's track and field team traveled to Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology to compete in the HCAC Indoor Championships in Terre Haute, Ind. The team finished seventh overall with 43 points. 

The women excelled in the weight throw as the Yellow Jackets placed two individuals in the top-three in the event and six overall in the top-10. Junior Cassidy Santen (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove) led the way with a runner-up finish with a best throw of 47' 11.00".  Fellow junior Brooke Waidelich (Pettisville) placed just behind Santen in third place with a toss of 46' 3.25". Also placing in the top-five in the event was senior Alexis Walker (Ft. Myers, Fla./Ft. Myers) who was fourth with a mark of 45' 4.25".  Rounding out the DC competitors in the event was senior Katie Tilman (Miami Springs, Fla./Immaculata-La Salle) who placed sixth (43' 2.25"), freshman Madi Bowman (Eaton) was seventh (43' 0.25") and junior Hannah Williams (Swanton) was 10th (39' 8.75").

In the running events, two women finished in the top-20 of the 60-meter dash. Junior Danielle Robbins (Westland, Mich./Wayne Memorial) had a 12th-place finish (8.50 seconds). Junior Laura Lutzke finished 15th with a time of 8.71 seconds. 

In the 200-meter dash, Robbins had an eighth place finish, crossing the finish line in a time of 28.05 seconds. Lutzke also competed in the event and placed in the top-20 with a time of 30.37 seconds to place 19th overall. 

Robbins also went on to compete in the 400-meter dash and placed 12th overall in a time of 1:06.27. 

The 4x200 meter relay squad took a sixth place finish out of nine teams, claiming three points for the team overall, after posting a time of 1:55.80. The relay squad consisted of Robbins, Lutzke, freshmen Malia Ferry (Milford) and Katie Settich (Huber Heights/Chaminade-Julienne).   

Additional top performances in the field events came in shot put as the Jackets had three members finish in the top-ten. Walker finished third overall with a best throw of 39' 04.00". Santen finished close behind, taking fourth, following a throw of 37' 10.50". Tilman recorded a mark of 37' 5.75" which was good enough for sixth place. Waidelich just missed placing in the top-ten, ending with an 11th place finish with a launch of 34' 00.25". 

"Overall, track teams had a collection of 19 personal bests," said Head Coach Ken Ciolek. "We had huge contributions across the board, highlighted by Petro winning the men's weight throw and five women placing in the women's weight. It was an overall huge day for the kids."

The Jackets will return to action on Saturday, Feb. 25 when they travel to Anderson, Ind. to compete in the Anderson University Last Chance Meet. The meet will begin at 3 p.m.